The Final Goodbye
by ShadowGirl996
Summary: Astrid is running out of time. She can feel him slipping away, getting farther and farther away from her protection. She has to do it this time. No question. It has to be her.


**Title: **The Final Goodbye

**Rating: **K

**Summary: **Astrid was running out of time. She could feel him slipping away, slowly getting farther and farther, until she could no longer protect him. She had to do it this time. There was no question. It would be her.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own _How to Train Your Dragon_.

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><p>They were so close. She could feel it, pulsing in her veins.<p>

Astrid jumped off of her dragon, sprinting to another trap. There were so many, it seemed almost impossible to free all of the innocent dragons trapped inside of them. She pried it open, wedging her axe into the gap to hold it open. Climbing inside, she saw the dragon.

It was a Deadly Nadder, so small in size that it couldn't have been more than a few weeks old. Both of it's wings were torn, bloody masses hanging uselessly against it's sides. The scent of rotting flesh surrounded it.

Astrid subconsciously raised a hand to her mouth, bile rising in her throat. The hatchling was long dead, it's now milky yellow eyes frozen in a glassy stare. She couldn't bare to look at it, yet she couldn't seem to look away either.

"STOP! Stop!"

Astrid looked up, hearing that familiar nasally voice that she had come to love. _Hiccup_.lo She climbed out of the trap, scoping the area. He had said he wanted to confront Drago himself, but she couldn't see him... there, on the other side of the battlefield. She began to run.

Hiccup tried to keep a calm, straight face as he unmounted Toothless, tossing his helmet into the snow behind him with a thunk. Drago turned, having heard the noise. Seeing Hiccup, he laughed.

"This is the Great Dragon Master? The son of Stoick the Vast? What shame he must feel!" Drago mocked, looking down at Hiccup. Hiccup ignored the comment, having grown used to jeers and mockery as a child, when his father did in fact feel shame when looking at him. "All of this loss... and for what? To become unstoppable? To rule the world? Dragons... th-they are kind, amazing creatures that bring people together," Hiccup reasoned, glancing at Toothless, who stood loyally by his side.

Drago narrowed his eyes, throwing his bullhorn into the snow. He unbuckled his prosthetic right arm, revealing the scarred tissue beneath. Hiccup grimaced, backing away, the ghastly scars far too similar to his own.

"Or tear them apart."

Drago began to move closer, buckling his prosthetic back into place. "You see? I know what it is to live in_ fear_. To see my village burned. My family taken. But even as a boy, left with nothing, I vowed to rise above the fear of dragons and liberate the people of this world."

Hiccup looked up at him, his green eyes wide with both fear and anger. "Then why a dragon army?" He asked.

"Well, you need DRAGONS to conquer other dragons." Drago rasped, pulling his bullhorn from where it stuck out of the snow.

"Or maybe you need dragons to conquer people. To _ control _those who follow you. And to get rid of those who don't," Hiccup fired back, his eyes burning with utter fury. Drago laughed, brushing his comment off. "Clever boy."

"The world wants peace. And we have the answer back on Berk," Hiccup reached out to grasp Drago's arm, his eyes never leaving his, "just let me show you-"

"No! Let _me_ show _you_!" Drago turned, swinging his bullhorn over his head as he screamed for his Alpha. The dragon turned, it's pupils narrowing as it came closer. Drago pointed his bullhorn towards Toothless. The Alpha looked at Toothless, it's bloodshot eyes possessing a strange power.

Toothless began to tremble, his eyes squeezing shut as he roared. He shook his head, trying to shake away the Alpha's voice. He was too weak, he couldn't fight it.

"Toothless? T-Toothless, you okay, bud? What's going on?"

The Alpha's glare grew instenser, his quills quivering as he stared down the smaller dragon. Toothless crooned in what seemed to be pain, continuing to shake his head. His pupils shrunk and dilated at an unsteady rate; wild one moment and afraid the next.

"Witness true strength, the strength of will over others."

Toothless' eyes flew open, his pupils thin.

"In the face of it, you are nothing."

Drago shifted his bullhorn to Hiccup. Toothless swiveled his head to stare with wild eyes at his friend. He unfurled his wings, backing Hiccup toward the ice that was once the Dragon Sanctuary.

The dragon continued to stalk forward, his movements jerky and stiff, nothing l7ike his usual graceful gait. He seemed to be watching something in the far distance, out of sight.

"Toothless... come on! What's the matter with you? No, no, no... come on! What are you doing? Knock it off! Stop! Snap out of it!" Hiccup cried, his voice pleading.

The distance between them melted away; snow flying up as she sprinted, his name on her lips. Drago Bludvist was not one to play games. Astrid knew from the stories what this man was capable of. She couldn't- wouldn't let him hurt Hiccup. She had to get there in time. She wouldn't be able to live with herself if anything happened to him.

"Toothless! No! Toothless! Don't!"

She didn't realize there were tears in her eyes until her lungs began to scream for air, her chest heaving as she sobbed. "H-Hiccup!" She called, but it was too weak for him to hear over the battle. She continued to run, dodging dragons and Vikings, who seemed to never even noticed her. She could feel time slowing; him slipping through her fingers. She forced herself to run faster; to make it. She had to. Without him...

"STOP!"

Toothless opened his maw, which began to glow with a bright blue aura. Hiccup raised his hand, trembling, as a sign of surrender. There was no response; Toothless was going to fire. He was no longer the Toothless Hiccup had once known. Now, he was only a pawn in Drago's game.

"Hiccup!"

Hiccup turned, his wide eyes meeting Astrid's. "Astrid! NO!" With a final burst of speed, she shoved him into the snow with all of her strength, clenching her eyes shut.

The sheer force of the blast flung her to the side like a doll, her bones cracking upon making impact with ice.

It was as if everyone had stopped fighting to watch, to wonder who was alive and who was not.

The air grew heavy as others rushed forward, silent cries falling from their lips. The Dragon Riders watched from afar, their eyes puffy with tears.

Drago turned, hardly giving them a glance before directing his Alpha toward Berk. Toward _home_.

It took several moments too long for Hiccup to catch his breath. He stood on shaking legs, still panting. And then he saw her. "No..."

He fell to his knees by her side, pushing away slabs of ice before cradling her in his arms. She looked almost at ease; her eyes closed, lips just slightly parted. She was more beautiful than ever.

It wasn't possible. No one could take down Astrid. She had always been so brave, never afraid to accept a challenge. She had always known what she wanted and strived to find it. She let nothing stand in her way of victory.

Hiccup pressed his ear to her chest, listening for something- _anything_. There was no way... she had to be alright...

"Astrid! Astrid... no, you..."

There was nothing.

"No, no, no..." Hiccup felt his mother's hand on his shoulder, her green eyes watching. He knew she was uncomfortable, having never met Astrid. But he didn't care. She was gone. She was actually, truly gone. He would never fix her axe in the forge again, or take her on late night flights on Toothless, or see her win yet another Dragon Race...

The fearless Astrid Hofferson was gone.

Toothless shook his head, finally clear of the Alpha's menacing voice. He looked toward his rider, who sat with his mate cradled in his arms. He was crying, Toothless could tell, but he had no thought as to why. He moved closer, watching them. Neither made any move to push him away. Satisfied, Toothless nudged at Astrid's hand, repeating the action when there was no response. Hiccup noticed him and his eyes narrowed like they never had before.

"No! Get away from her!" He shouted, shielding the young woman. Toothess cowered, looking up at him with pleading eyes.

"Go on! Get out of here!

Toothless warbled at him, not understanding. What had he done to make his rider so upset with him? Why was his mate so still? Toothless glanced up at him, his pupils fully dilated.

"Get away!"

Toothless crooned, giving his friend one last sad glance before running off. If his rider wanted him to leave, then he would, no matter how much it hurt him. He would have done anything to make his rider happy.

"It's not his fault, you know that. Good dragons under the control of bad people do bad things." Valka sighed, rubbing Hiccup's shoulder. She knew what he was feeling. Loss. Heartbreak. Remorse. She had felt the similar feelings after being taking during that raid so many years before. Wondering if her boy had ever made it through that winter... if he remembered her... what he was like, were all thoughts she had. Then she had been reunited with him, only to find that he had taken after her, regardless of so many years apart. They would move forward, as mother and son, and bond. But it was obvious that this young woman had been someone Hiccup held dear, and she would not be coming back.

They were both alerted by a screech, looking up to see a dark winged dragon rise into the air, a madman on his back.

Hiccup bowed his head forward, his heart feeling as if a cold hand was clenching it tightly. He had nothing. No elaborate plan or invention to fix everything. No one to help him take back Berk from Drago. He could do nothing but watch as his dragon was used a weapon of destruction that would soon be rained down on his home, his dead lover in his arms.

He had finally been broken.

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><p>I know it may not be the best, but let me know what yu guys think of this story. I though I would give the idea of Astrid taking the blast for Hiccup instead of Stoick a shot (no pun intended). Did it seem realistic? Not emotional enough? Was there enough of Toothless involved I tried to alternate between characters every few paragraphs- something that I have never tried before. Anyway, Read and Review!<p>

ShadowGirl996


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